The Last Wish (A One Direction Fanfiction)
by aznlurve
Summary: I know everyone says this, but it really seemed like a good idea at the time. A foolproof plan; not something that was likely to get me, oh, say, thrown in jail. All I was doing was trying to help my five-year old sister, Skylar, beat cancer. She's been so afraid of this upcoming surgery that I decided to step in. I told Skylar that I had a genie, and I still had two wishes left.
1. Prologue

I know everyone says this, but it really seemed like a good idea at the time. A foolproof plan; not something that was likely to get me, oh, say, thrown in jail. All I was doing was trying to help my five-year old sister, Skylar, beat cancer. She's been so afraid of this upcoming surgery that I decided to step in.

I told Skylar that I had a genie, and I still had two wishes left. She could use one for anything she wanted and one to make her surgery go well. I knew she'd ask for the new collection of singing One Direction dolls. It's all she talked about since their new album, _Take Me Home_ came out. She was especially a fan of Harry.

But there is no such thing as a foolproof plan when it comes to five-year-olds. Instead, she asked for Harry and the rest of One Direction to come sing with her. And now I have just a couple of days to drive to Florida where they're on tour, find Harry-who I must admit, _is_ pretty hot-and convince him and the guys to visit my little sister.

At times like this, I think I could use a genie myself.


	2. Chapter 1

I would have maybe expected to see this sort of line if, say, Elvis returned from the dead to give a concert. Or if some amazing billionaire was handing out free sports cars. But I definitely hadn't expected to see this many people lined up waiting for the Black Friday sale at Toys "R" Us. Apparently every resident of Atlanta, Georgia, had come out, and it was still only 5:40 A.M. The store didn't even open for another twenty minutes.

Kayla zipped up her jacket higher as we climbed out of my minivan. "You owe me," she says, blowing out a breath of cold air.

I didn't answer, partly because it was true, and partly because I was too busy running to the end of the line.

Kayla was not only my best friend, but probably the only friend I could convince to get up this early to track down those singing One Direction dolls for my five-year old sister. I myself even wouldn't have woken up at five if it weren't so important. Kayla's usually perfect dark red hair looked as if she hadn't even brushed it. I'd thrown on sweats and shoved my hair in a ponytail.

Kayla peered at the line in front of us. "You know Allegra, if you can't find the dolls, I'm sure Skylar would be fine with a different gift. Maybe you could get her t-shirt or something."

I shook my head. "It has to be the dolls."

At six o'clock the doors opened, but it took us another ten minutes to get inside. By that time the aisles buzzed with people grabbing toys from shelves, and lines had already formed at the registers.

I look at Kayla, "Why don't you go stand in line while I look for the dolls. It'll be quicker that way."

I cut across the Barbie doll aisle and momentarily considered picking up a girlfriend for Harry. Finally, I reach the One Direction row. The regular six-inch set Skylar already owned sat on the shelf, but I didn't see the new singing twelve-inch version.

A man with a couple dozen of boxes in his shopping cart stood sifting through them.

"Are there any more singing One Direction dolls left?" I asked. "I need a set for my little sister."

"Then you're in luck," he said, glancing up at me. "I'll sell you a box for a hundred dollars."

"A hundred? They cost nineteen."

"Not anymore," he replied, grinning. "That's free market kid."

I turned toward the man. My mother claims I have a sixth sense about people. I know within seconds what they're like and what makes them mad. Looking at the man now, I sized him up. He wasn't the type-even if I had been wearing makeup-that I could swish my long blond hair around and he'd take pity on a pretty girl. Only money motivated him.

Thinking fast, I looked around the store, weighing my chances. "Have you ever played football?"

He gazed at me suspiciously. "Sure."

I glanced down at his bulging stomach. "Bet you haven't played awhile."

"What do you mean?"

I drew in a breath and ran to my right, and then spun back left as he moved to block me. I grabbed a box of dolls and ran away.

He tried to follow me, but wouldn't release his shopping cart.

I found Kayla and shoved the box and my wallet into her arms. "Here, buy it. And don't let some bald, overweight guy try to steal it. Start screaming if he tries."

Her eyes widened in panic. "Allie, what did you do?"

"Nothing!" I shouted, and ran to my minivan before the guy caught up.

Kayla came out twenty minutes later. She handed me the shopping bag and stared at me. "You risked my life for a stupid toy, didn't you?"

"Not really," I said, and she glared at me.

"Skylar wanted singing One Direction dolls."

"She also wants to become a famous pop star and marry Harry Styles. Look, Skylar is going to be okay, Al. There are lots of people with cancer that recover fine. She probably has better odds than, say, someone who gets in a car with you."

I turned away without answering, and we drove back to Kayla's house. "Hey," I said as she got out of the car, "thanks."

"No problem," she says, smiling a little. "It was fun."

As I pull into my own driveway, I look at the shopping bag next to me. This would work. I'd read dozens of stories about how positive thinking had saved people's lives. Lots of people got better because they believed they would.

If the surgery was successful next Friday and they could remove the whole tumor, then everything would be fine. Everything would be just fine.


	3. Chapter 2

I pulled up to our house. The garage was empty. My parents must have gone out to brave the crowds too. I made a beeline for my bedroom, shoved my shopping bag in the closet, and went back to bed.

Two hours later, I woke up the sound of piano and guitar. Skylar has been practicing singing as much as possible in hopes of achieving her dreams.

I pulled myself out of bed, then took the One Direction dolls out of the bag to reassure myself I'd really gotten them. I hadn't examined the toys closely before, but the dolls did bear a striking resemblance to the boys. Harry had the same curly brown hair and his blue eyes gazed back at me. I could almost imagine him on stage singing.

I stared at him a while longer. Probably longer than normal for a seventeen-year-old girl to stare at a plastic doll. Sometimes when I watch their concerts online I feel a connection with Harry Styles. I feel like he's someone I already know, someone who fits with me. It stinks that he's probably one of those pampered celebrities who never sets foot in a grocery store though.

I slid the box under my bed for later. I would wait until Skylar and I were alone, until everything was perfect and my plan couldn't go wrong. Then I would give it to her.

When I went into the kitchen, Mom and Dad were cleaning up the dishes from a waffle breakfast, Skylar's favorite.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty," Dad called to me. "We saved you a couple, but you'll need to heat them up."

Mom looked up from the sink. "Did you get any good bargains?"

I picked up a waffle and took a bite. "Actually, I made out like a bandit. How about you guys?"

"I got some good deals. I couldn't find the One Direction dolls anywhere though. We told Skylar the stores were all sold out and so now she wants to go to the mall to ask Santa for one." Her eyes crinkled with worry.

"Don't worry," I said, trying not to smile. "Something might turn up."

After breakfast, I played along with Skylar while she sang. I tried to get Elise to join in, but she was too busy simultaneously tying up the phone line while texting on her cell.

Elise goes to Liberty University in Georgia, which basically means she lives with us but is disdainful about being forced into spending time with us. Usually when she's not at class she's out somewhere working on her social life.

People say I look like Elise, and I take it as a compliment. The difference is, beauty and flirting have always come naturally to her. Everything I know on both subjects, I've just copied. Sometimes when I'm with guys, I'm not sure if I'm being myself or channeling my sister. I'd just rather shoot hoops with them instead of batting my eyelashes.

After Skylar and I were done practicing, she looked at me. "I'm going to get the One Direction dolls for my birthday. They sing for real."

I walked to my room and motioned for her to follow. "Come on. I want to tell you a secret."

She trotted after me, and when we got to my room, I sat cross-legged on my bed. She climbed up and curled next to me, looking serious. "What's your secret?"

I leaned toward her, my voice low. "Well, I've never told anyone this before, but years ago I found a magic lamp, the kind genies live in. I rubbed the lamp, released the genie, and got three wishes. But I didn't use them all. I still have two left."

Skylar looked up at me, doubt written across her face. "I'm five, Allegra. I know there's no such thing as genies."

This is from the girl who wanted to ask Santa for some dolls, and wanted to marry Harry Styles.

"It's true," I insisted. "I have two wishes left, and I want to give them to you."

Her eyes narrowed skeptically. "What was your first wish?"

"Um…" You'd think I would have thought this through, but I hadn't. I mean what kind of five-year-old when given two wishes asks you what you wished for?

"I'll tell you another time. Right now I want to explain the rules about wishing because you can't wish for more wishes or for impossible stuff like superpowers. Besides, my genie is one of those difficult ones so you might end up as invisible forever or something. I want you to use your last wish to make sure the surgery will go fine. That way you won't have to worry about it anymore."

"Why don't I wish that I don't have to have the surgery in the first place?" she asked, and her eyes lit up at this prospect.

It hurt to have to disappoint her. "Mom and Dad would make you have the surgery anyway. They don't believe in genies, so it wouldn't matter what we told them. It's better to just wish that it'll go fine."

Skylar nodded, accepting this explanation, then looked back at me. "Allegra, are you tricking me?"

"No. Now shut your eyes and say, 'This is my official second wish,' and wish for something you really want." I leaned toward her, my eyes never leaving her face. "What toy would you most want right now?"

She closed her eyes. "Do I have to call for the genie first?"

"He'll come when you say it. That's why you have to shut your eyes. He's shy around people. You're not supposed to see him." I put my hands under the bed, ready to grab the box. "Now what's your official wish? Think of something you really, really want."

She fidgeted, thinking, then clasped her hands together in decision. "This is my official second wish. I wish the real Harry Styles and the rest of One Direction would come and teach me how to sing."


End file.
